Microblogging can be an effective tool in an educational context. There are several useful reasons Twitter can be a beneficial microblogging tool. One example involves using Twitter as a quick and easy communication tool for instructors and students to build learning communities. Real-time information pertaining to assignments, class schedules, and hot topics can be distributed efficiently via Twitter. Another example involves furthering a discussion that would normally end when synchronous sessions end. A learning community can debate, advocate, dissuade, or simply share about course-related topics long after class ends. Since technology is dynamic and continually changing, course discussions could also be dynamic while engaging learners beyond the classroom (virtual or F2F) environment. Learners can become curators of significant information anytime, anywhere. Microblogging can be accomplished via mobile devices and its interactive and convenient nature of can enhance learning experiences.

Three specific reasons to support Twitter as a useful tool in an educational context.  A micro and macro perspective:

Hashtags can be utilized to target a specific audience.
Micro - Students enrolled in a course
Macro - All who are interested in the same topic, field, industry.

Hashtags can be utilized to manage specific information.
Micro - Query course content, course discussion thread
Macro - Query relevant topics in a specific field, industry, and query discussion threads in a specific topic, field or industry.

Social and professional networking to acquire new knowledge about educational technology and trends.
Micro – build learning community amongst students and instructor
Macro – expand your reach by networking with others interested in the same topics, field, or industry to acquire more and new knowledge 

Background & Overview:

The Internet was made public in the 1990ʻs, however, Project Gutenberg began offering free electronic books in 1971 (“Internet timeline,” 2000; “Project Gutenberg,” 2012). The first electronic document by Project Gutenberg was the Declaration of Independence. Since then, digitized reading materials have become routine and perhaps expected (Mealer, Morgan & Williams, 2011). More than 2,000,000 titles are available from various electronic distributors and the number continues to grow ("Survey of Kindle," 2011). The 2011 Horizon Report described the practice of electronic books to be a meaningful impact in the area of higher education (Johnson, Smith, Willis, Levine & Haywood, 2011). There are several eReader devices available such as Kindle, Sony Reader, Nook, and Kobo.

An essential point to keep in mind is the difference between eReaders and tablets. Although some eReaders have wireless features to access the Internet, they should not be considered the same device as tablets such as Appleʻs iPad. However, eReader applications can be easily installed on tablets.

Discussion:
What are the implications of implementing eReaders in a higher education learning environment? Are eReaders being utilized in learning contexts? Are there formative and summative opportunities with eReaders? Here are a few advantages and disadvantages to consider:

Advantages:

• Accessibility
  
• Cloud-based
• Contextual search capabilities, annotation and citation tools, highlighting, and bookmarking.
• Lightweight portability for mobile learning (BYOD)
• Individual and social interactive features
• e-ink for easy reading
• Text to speech feature
• Available on multiple platforms

Disadvantages:

• Lack of page number identification
• Eye fatigue for some eReaders
• Not all models have touch screen capabilities

Other Considerations:

• Device and Internet access required
• Entry level behavior skills required
• Digital Rights Management (DRM)
• Intellectual Property & Copyright
• Accessibility, American Disabilities Act (ADA)
• RAM (memory)
• Battery life (dependent on eReader device)
• Overall cost (versus printed textbooks)

Summary:
A thorough context and learner analysis is necessary in order to determine whether this technology can be integrated to successfully meet learning objectives.

References:
Internet Timeline. (2000). Teacher Librarian, 27(5), 68.

Johnson, L., Smith, R., Willis, H., Levine, A., and Haywood, K., (2011). The 2011 horizon report: Higher education edition.
Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium. Retrieved from http://www.nmc.org/pdf/2011-Horizon-Report.pdf.

Mealer, C. K., Morgan, P. J., & Williams, C. W. (2011). ereaders in higher education. (Master's thesis, University of Alabama). Retrieved from http://csm570spring11.pbworks.com/f/eReader.

Project Gutenberg. (2012, April 08). Retrieved from http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page.

Survey of Kindle, Nook, Ipad, Sony and overdrive ebook store collection size. (2012, January 12). Retrieved from http://www.ebookreaderguide.com/2011/03/13/kindle-nookcolor-ipad2-sony-overdrive-which-ebookstore-has-most-ebook-titles/. 

A very successful conference! Day 3 was just as informative as Days 1 and 2. Today included more sessions of mastersʻ research projects. Here is a list of presentation topics for sessions I attended with links to the pages where you can easily access the recordings and discussion forums:

• Meditation for Stress Reduction Seminar
• Integrating Facebook Into Distance Education and Online Learning Environments
• Learning Pronunciation of Chinese Surnames, Proper Salutations and Useful Greetings Using VoiceThread
• Computer Security Strategies: An Instructional Design Approach
• Military time: Time management as a success factor among military students taking an online course

Meileneʻs session, Learning Pronunciation of Chinese Surnames, Proper Salutations and Useful Greetings Using VoiceThread, was useful for me because she did an exceptional job of designing her instructional module and presenting the data. I was reminded how important it is to help the learner make meaningful connections to the content being taught. 

All of the session recordings are available so if you were unable to attend, be sure to watch the recording. I look forward to 2013 TCC Online Conference!!

We are on day 3 of the conference and I am only now posting a reflection for day 2!! I have been attending great sessions and found the time slipping away faster than I could manage. The quality of information has been refreshing and enlightening. Here is a list of presentation topics for sessions I attended with links to the pages where you can easily access the recordings and discussion forums:

WOW! What a wealth of diverse information. If you have not yet attended any of the sessions, you are missing out on a great opportunity. I implore you to make time for 2012 TCC Online Conference. There are more sessions today and tomorrow. Please take advantage of them! 

We are currently on day two of the conference and I am still feeling the excitement generated from day one! I was able to participate in several sessions. Here is a list of presentation topics for sessions I attended with links to the pages where you can easily access the recordings and discussion forums:

Tonightʻs class session was informative, however, it also put me in a state of anxiety about the 2012 TCC Online Conference next week! I am preparing for my graduate presentation and am suddenly feeling nervous, concerned, and doubtful! I plan to practice, practice, and practice over the next three days in preparation for my rehearsal presentation this Thursday.  Of course, Iʻll practice again before my actual conference presentation next Tuesday.

I am excited about participating in the conference as a presenter and an attendee. There are many presentations to choose from. One of my strategies is to read through the list of topics in order to make thoughtful choices of which presentations to attend. I also hope to access recordings of presentations that I may miss. Abstracts of the papers are provided which will help me get an overall idea of what to expect.

Iʻll try my best! If you are available, feel free to attend my presentation next Tuesday, April 17th at 6:30 p.m. in Track 1.  Here is a link for more details (youʻll need to page down a bit to find my name). https://tcc2012program.wikispaces.com/Tuesday